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When the pioneer couple arrived in their wagon they found a place of great beauty. There was a series of springs, open valley and rolling fertile land for cultivating and grazing, plus a good stand of timber.
While others had camped around the springs on the edge of the prairie, it wasn't until 1832 that William and Rhoda Harris arrived from Henry County, Va., with their two children, becoming the first people to settle there.
He was fond of hunting and, to a certain extent, was involved in preaching.
She was one of those pioneer women who was “on call” night and day as a practical nurse and as a mid-wife who brought newborn babies into the world.
Mrs. Harris tended an herb garden and was the neighborhood pharmacist. The Harrises had 11 more children after they settled in to their new surroundings.
In 1845, their infant son, Lewis, died and was the first child buried in the Blue Springs Cemetery.
When Mr. Harris died, he was the first adult buried there. Of those 13 children, there was only one girl, Nancy. She became the grandmother of Rufus Burrus, an Independence attorney, and one of Harry Truman's close advisors.
In 1838 Franklin Smith Jr. opened the first store and post office and called it Blue Springs.
A small community soon grew up around the edge of the spring near the present intersection of Woods Chapel Road and Walnut Street where the Burrus Old Mill Park is located, just east of Lake Tapawingo.
Reference: The Blue Springs Historical Society.
When the pioneer couple arrived in their wagon they found a place of great beauty. There was a series of springs, open valley and rolling fertile land for cultivating and grazing, plus a good stand of timber.
While others had camped around the springs on the edge of the prairie, it wasn't until 1832 that William and Rhoda Harris arrived from Henry County, Va., with their two children, becoming the first people to settle there.
He was fond of hunting and, to a certain extent, was involved in preaching.
She was one of those pioneer women who was “on call” night and day as a practical nurse and as a mid-wife who brought newborn babies into the world.
Mrs. Harris tended an herb garden and was the neighborhood pharmacist. The Harrises had 11 more children after they settled in to their new surroundings.
In 1845, their infant son, Lewis, died and was the first child buried in the Blue Springs Cemetery.
When Mr. Harris died, he was the first adult buried there. Of those 13 children, there was only one girl, Nancy. She became the grandmother of Rufus Burrus, an Independence attorney, and one of Harry Truman's close advisors.
In 1838 Franklin Smith Jr. opened the first store and post office and called it Blue Springs.
A small community soon grew up around the edge of the spring near the present intersection of Woods Chapel Road and Walnut Street where the Burrus Old Mill Park is located, just east of Lake Tapawingo.
Reference: The Blue Springs Historical Society.
